Man United’s Raphael Varane opens up on his struggles and WHY he’s quitting France duty at 29

Raphael Varane has revealed that he decided to retire from France service because he was struggling to cope with football’s “overloaded schedule”.

Varane ended his international career on Thursday, even though he was apparently at his peak and still has two months to go before his 30th birthday.

But the Manchester United defender has opened up about how constantly having to play at the highest level has taken a toll on him and led to the difficult decision to stop playing for France.

“I gave it my all, physically and mentally,” Varane said in an interview with channel+ which will be released in its entirety on Sunday. ‘But the highest level is like a washing machine, you play all the time and you never stop,

‘We have overloaded schedules and we play non-stop. Right now, I feel like I’m suffocating and that [Varane] the player is swallowing [Varane] the man.’

Varane’s announcement was all the more shocking considering he appeared to be in the top position to be France’s next captain after Hugo Lloris confirmed his international retirement last month.

Varane made 93 appearances for his country after making his debut in 2013 and was a mainstay at the heart of the defense for a decade.

He played every minute at the 2018 World Cup when Les Bleus lifted the trophy for the second time in their history, and he played a key role in France’s run to the final in Qatar last year.

The 29-year-old also won the Nations League with his country in 2021, as France came from behind to beat Spain 2-1 in the final.

They failed to win the Euro, as France fell short in the 2016 final against Portugal, and there may have been a temptation to keep playing until next year’s tournament.

But he chose to walk away from international football after admitting it was having an effect on his mental well-being.

Varane’s retirement came as a shock to many, but was fully accepted by France manager Didier Deschamps, who thanked the centre-back for his ‘unwavering commitment to the blue jersey’.

But former France star Jerome Rothen has criticized Varane, claiming he has made a “stupid” decision to stop representing his country at such a young age.

Rothen has speculated that Varane’s retirement could be the result of a bad atmosphere in the France dressing room, despite the fact that the team came awfully close to retaining the World Cup at the end of 2022.

Varane is the third high-profile French player to retire from international duty in a matter of weeks, following in the footsteps of Lloris and Karim Benzema, who controversially missed out on the World Cup.

Benzema was sent home on the eve of the tournament due to a health problem and did not return to Qatar, despite claims by his agent that he was available for the round of 16.